Press Release – Feb. 2, 2012
Contact: Khanh Weinberg, (408) 921-0098
Fresno supervisors plan to reject subpoena for labor hearing
Elected officials don’t want to have to testify in public
FRESNO – Fresno County Board of Supervisor have been ordered to appear before the Public Employee Relations Board in March for an unfair labor practice hearing. But the county attorney’s office says the supervisors will move to quash the judge’s subpoena, which was issued on behalf of SEIU Local 521.
Fresno County workers have sued the county for negotiating in bad faith.
“This is just more evidence that the county feels it is above the democratic process that governs our land,” said Letticia Castellanos, an investigator with the county’ public defender’s office. “Why is the board afraid to submit to questions in public about how it handled negotiations with its employees? Is it because the supervisors would have to testify honestly under oath?”
The PERB hearing is scheduled for March 12-13 in Sacramento. The judge has agreed to allow the media inside to cover.
At its board meeting on Tuesday, the Board of Supervisors opted to hold off deciding whether to direct the county’s negotiators to come back to the table for mediation.
# # #www.seiu521.org
The Service Employees International Union is an organization of 2.1 million members united by the belief in the dignity and worth of workers and the services they provide. SEIU is dedicated to improving the lives of workers and their families and creating a more just and humane society. For more information, visit
